Dean Winchester, aka, Mother Hen
by TheWriteOne
Summary: Gabriel was always a mischievous angel, constantly causing trouble for his siblings. Ever since meeting the Winchesters, he's eagerly messed with them in various ways. Finally, he pulls the ultimate prank, using Castiel as his victim. Castiel is turned into what appears to be a human child, and Dean and Sam are left to clean up the mess.
1. Lollipops and Pancakes

"Gabriel, I don't want to fight you, but I will if necessary. Do not force my hand."

A chuckle emanated from the archangel's throat. "You misunderstand me, Cassie. I'm not trying to fight you."

Castiel stared at his brother with a confused glare. "I don't understand. Why did you ask to meet here if you have no conflict with me?"

"I think you'll find it helpful to look at this specific jig from a different… perspective. Sometimes a fresh point of view is all you need to solve a case." Gabriel smirked knowingly at Castiel, then raised a hand to snap his fingers.

"What jig? The Winchesters are currently-" Castiel was suddenly cut off by the snap of Gabe's fingers followed by a bright flash of yellow and gold light.

Once the illumination had subsided, a little boy was revealed sitting on the floor of the empty warehouse, right in the spot where Cas had been standing just moments before. The boy looked around with an owlish gaze before letting out an anguished wail. "No fair!"

"Oh, come on, Cas! Don't be that way, it's only temporary." The trickster loped over and knelt down in front of his baby brother. "I think you'll find this much more suitable for what you're hunting. Or will soon be hunting... Anyway, here, maybe this will make you feel better." A lollipop appeared in Cas' hands and he stopped crying, putting the candy in his mouth instead while staring up at Gabriel with giant, innocent eyes (yet still somehow managing to look angry). "That's better. Well, I should get you back to Dean before he has a conniption fit."

"Meany…" Cas mumbled around the lollipop. He pushed Gabriel's hand away when he tried to pick up the grumpy toddler; however, he squealed with laughter when Gabe poked his sides and started tickling him. While Cas was thusly disarmed, Gabe took the chance to swoop him into his arms. Rather than fight him, Cas snuggled into his brother's chest and yawned.

"Looks like it's somebody's bed time," Gabe cooed before snapping his fingers once more to transport them to Dean and Sam's hotel room. When he looked around to survey their surroundings, Gabe discovered that all three were sound asleep. With a cocky grin, he tucked Cas in beside Dean and set the lollipop on the bedside table. When Cas cuddled closer to Dean and the grown man wrapped his arms around him, Gabriel had to stifle the laughter that threatened to explode at the thought of Dean waking up to a hyper five year old bouncing on his stomach. With one final glance around, he disappeared to watch from afar.

A few hours later, at precisely six a.m., Dean woke up to a vicious attack by an unknown enemy. He shot up to his feet, pistol already in hand, but a sweep around the room revealed no obvious rivals. He frowned and started turning toward Sam to ask what was happening when a squeaky voice interrupted his thoughts.

"Dean! Dean, Dean!" Tiny hands grabbed at his t-shirt and he finally looked down.

"Sam!" Dean shouted. His giant moose of a brother tried to perform the same smooth transition from lying down to fighting pose, but his gangly limbs got caught in the sheets and he ended up on the floor instead. He was about to tell Dean off for waking him up in the middle of a pleasant dream, but reconsidered when a small face appeared inches in front of his, then a tiny finger poked his nose.

"Sammy! Wake up, the sun's out! We're burnin' daylight here, mister." The young boy then proceeded to jump back up and run over to the curtains, yanking them open and effectively blinding both of the adults.

"Woah, hey, no need for that!" Dean shielded his eyes and walked over to close the curtains again, but the toddler tackled his legs.

"I'm hungry, I want pancakes. Can we go get pancakes, Dean? Pleeaaase?" He batted his insanely large, blue eyes with his pale pink lips pulled down in a pout.

"Look, kid, I'm not sure who you are or how you got in here, but we need to find your parents. They're probably worried sick about you…" Dean bent down and hefted the kid into his arms and balanced him on his hip.

"But.. But Dean…" His eyes started tearing up. "Don't you know me?"

"Uh, Dean…" When Dean looked towards his brother, Sam held up a miniature trench coat that had been draped over the desk chair. "I think this just got a bit more difficult."


	2. Hotel Baths

Dean's gaze shifted from the toddler in his arms to the jacket Sam was holding and back to the toddler. "Castiel?"

"Yeah!" Cas' little face brightened and he hugged Dean around the neck.

Sam frowned and raised his eyebrows in confusion, shrugging when Dean turned to him for help. He set the coat down on Dean's... and Castiel's.. bed, then noticed the lollipop still sitting on the dresser. "Dean, who do we know that's obsessed with sweets?"

Castiel raised his hand. "Me! I like candy!"

"Why don't you go take a shower or something?" Dean set Castiel down on the floor, but he pouted and clutched Dean's boxer shorts.

"I don't wanna… I wanna get pancakes!"

"Cas," Dean groaned. "Fine, I'll draw you a bath, then we'll go get breakfast."

"Yaay!" Cas ran into the bathroom and threw off his clothes.

Dean followed his tiny angel, throwing a glare back at Sam, who was trying very hard not to laugh for Dean's benefit. Castiel was now very naked and had turned on the water in the bathtub. Dean knelt down and stoppered the tub after scrubbing in vain at a stain on the porcelain wall. He grimaced and helped Cas into the warm water. He then poured in shampoo to make bubbles and get him somewhat clean before leaving the room to have a serious discussion with his brother.

"You think Gabriel did this? As in the archangel turned trickster god?" he asked.

Sam shrugged. "I don't know, but that's our best bet right now. Who else has the power to turn a powerful angel into a human toddler, even temporarily?"

"So what do we do now, summon Gabriel and demand that he turn Cas back to normal?"

"Why would he do it in the first place? Last time I checked, the guy's not exactly rooting for the devil. How would making Cas younger convince us to 'play our roles' like he wants?"

"I don't know, but we sure as hell aren't letting him stay that way. I am not father material."

"What else can we do, Dean? I don't know about you, but I haven't exactly heard of any ways to turn people into angels. Gabriel is our best bet."

Dean ran a hand over his face and nodded. "First chance I get, I am trapping that bastard in a vat of holy oil until he fixes this." He pointed to emphasize his point. When they heard giggles, Dean peeked in the bathroom to check on Cas and groaned when he saw water had been splashed everywhere, including the towels. He made sure Cas was happily playing with the bubbles, not injured in any way, and closed the door again. "I don't have enough patience to raise a kid."

"We'll call Gabriel when we get back. Right now, though, we need to get Cas his pancakes before he starts crying." Sam opened what was most likely a ten year old brochure that had been sitting on the table and thumbed through it to see what restaurants were around. "Besides, you raised me and I turned out just fine."

"I had help, and that was nothing like this. First of all, you're my brother, and second of all you haven't spent your whole life as an angel. He has no idea how to be human, let alone as a kid."

"Whatever you say, Dean, but to me you were always more of a father figure than dad. And as long as we can keep Cas out of trouble until after breakfast, we'll be fine."

"If Gabriel shows up. If he agrees to fix Cas. And If it really was Gabriel that did this in the first place." He started pacing while Sam watched out of the corner of his eyes, attempting to hide another amused smile.

"You know, for someone who 'isn't father material', you sure are acting like a mother hen."

"Dean!" Castiel's voice rang out from the bathroom. Dean glared at Sam as he brushed past him on his way to the bathroom. He squatted down by the bath and held open a blue, threadbare towel for Cas to dry off with.

"Come here, kiddo," Dean murmured as he lifted him out of the bath. He straightened up and started drying Cas off, rubbing the thin material through his hair as he had done for Sam so many years ago. A small smile crossed his lips subconsciously when Cas reached up to play with his hair.

"Are we gonna get pancakes now?"

"Of course we are, Cassie. Gotta eat like a man if you're going to grow up to be one like me."

"I'm gonna grow up to be a man like Dean." Cas giggled and smiled up at him.

"Then let me see your muscles." Cas flexed and Dean poked the his arm. "Wow!"

Sam just smiled and shook his head as he listened to them, remembering some of the better times he had gone through with Dean when they were younger.


	3. Research

Dean watched Castiel for a moment, struggling with his fork and knife, before taking his plate and cutting the pancakes himself. Sam pretended to be doing research on his laptop, but was really watching discreetly and smiling to himself. When Cas started stabbing at his pancakes with a fork grasped in his fist, Dean took up his own utensils and slathered his pancakes with butter and syrup. Castiel watched him, then switched the way he was holding his fork to mirror Dean. For a moment, Sam broke his cover to look up at them and chuckle. "Aw, how cute. And I thought you weren't father material?"

"Shut up," Dean growled before stuffing his face full of pancake.

"Yeah, shut up," Cas repeated and giggled.

Sam raised an eyebrow and Dean grinned annoyingly, ruffling Cas' hair with affection. "Keep this up and you're going to be awesome when you grow up, kid."

"He's already grown up, Dean. This isn't just any five year old kid, this is a millennia old angel!" Sam frowned at him. "Don't get too used to this, because the first chance we get to change him back, we're taking it."

"You think I don't know that? I'm just rolling with the punches; that's all. That's the best we can do until we call Gabriel, isn't it?" Dean insisted, drawing Cas' attention.

"Gabe? You're calling Gabe? Can I talk to him?" he asked with wide eyes.

"Yeah, we are. Not right now though," he continued while fending off Cas' grabby hands, pulling his cellphone out of the youngster's grip. "And not literally calling, I don't think he has a phone; we're going to summon him and get you changed back."

Reluctantly, Castiel let go of the phone. "Gabe won't do that. He said it's important."

"What exactly is important, Cas? You being a kid?" Sam glanced down, easily seeing the baby angel over the screen of his laptop.

"Yeah, he said… Uh… something about the thing we're hunting? I think…" Cas muttered, shoving some bacon into his mouth and blushing from embarrassment.

"Wait; did he say exactly what it is we're hunting?" Sam leaned forward and clasped his hands on the table.

"No. But he did say a kid could help. I dunno…" Cas got quiet, clearly uncomfortable with all the questions and not knowing the answers to them.

Dean caught on to Cas' distress and cut in. "Woah, slow down there, Sammy! Even if he is a millennia old angel usually, right now he's just a human kid, so take it easy."

"You never took it easy on me, even when I was his age," he snapped, suddenly bitter toward Dean's brotherly attitude for the kid.

His brother's words stopped Dean in his tracks, and all he could do was stare at him for a moment before shaking his head. "Sam, I… I'm sorry, but-"

"Forget it." Sam slumped back. "It was stupid; I know you were just trying to make me a good little hunter like Dad did for you."

"Sam-"

"Forget I said anything." He held up a hand to stop his brother before he said something that would just make the atmosphere tenser than it already was.

Quickly, he continued, "But get this, I think I found a lead. This summer camp, a church camp called Activate, is believed to be haunted. That's the story, anyway. I did some digging and found this article about how a little girl supposedly spoke to the devil before drowning herself in the lake. The camp was shut down for two years after that incident, but reopened when a Catholic school bought it."

Dean sat back and watched Castiel, who had been pretending to not notice the argument, just like Dean had done when Mary was still alive. "Any haunting?"

"Well, it was nine years ago when the girl drowned. After the Catholic school took over, someone's drowned once every year in the lake." Sam scoffed and muttered, "You would think the parents would stop sending their kids to a camp where seven people have died, but it just seems to increase the appeal."

"Where is it?"

"About a mile outside of town, but there's a course going on right now. Ages nine to fifteen. We can't exactly just waltz in guns a-blazing with kids running around, can we?"

"I don't see why not; we've done worse. They'll go home, get some therapy, and end up better than ever."

"Whatever you say, Dean. Let's go check it out after we're done eating. At least Cas can pretend to be our nephew or something that we're dropping off."

A dirty smile crossed Dean's face. "Do you think there'll be a camp nurse there?"

"Dean, we aren't here to pick up women. This is a camp for children, not for perverted men. If you're going to sleep with someone, go to a bar tonight after Cas is asleep, then go to her place." With a quick glance out of the corner of his eyes, Sam gave Dean the 'look'.

"I thought we were going to summon Gabriel to change Cas back after breakfast."

Sam shrugged and took a sip of coffee. "If what Cas said is true, then there's no point in it. Gabe clearly changed him for a reason, and for once it seems he actually wants to help us. Gabriel has blessed us with this case, so I say we work it and not look a gift horse in the mouth."

Dean shook his head and grumbled, "I don't know how they tie together, but he's just trying to get us to play our parts. Maybe he thinks being nice will help convince us to go along with the 'divine plans' Heaven has for us."

"Let's hope he's not too confident in that plan."

With a nod, Dean showed his agreement, then unwrapped a wet nap for Cas' sticky face and hands. Castiel giggled when Dean wiped the syrup off for him and climbed into Dean's lap to snuggle into his chest.


	4. Camp Too-Good-To-Be-True

Cas watched the other kids running around and huddled closer to Dean's side, gripping his hand. The trio had travelled the fifteen minutes outside of town to a child-infested hell hole of a summer camp and found the log cabin labeled Administration. Dean was surveying the new territory and, sure enough, there was a door leading into a nurse's office on the opposite wall. He had the urge to sidle over just enough to glance inside at who was surely a hot lady in a short, white uniform. 'Later,' he reminded himself. He had zoned out of the conversation, but was startled back into it by Sam's voice raised in frustration.

"I'm glad the pope accepts gays, but we're brothers and this is my nephew Cameron," insisted Sam. He continued in a calmer voice, "This is David, Cameron's father. They're planning on moving here, and I've lived nearby for the last five years, so I thought it would be good to show him the local summer camp."

"Ah, sorry about that. You guys just look so…" The man behind the desk shook his head and looked at Dean. "Anyway, I need to know your religious affiliation. This is, after all, a Catholic camp."

"Uh, well, actually-" Dean began before being cut off by Castiel.

"Mommy took me to church with her. I don't go now, 'cause daddy doesn't believe. They aren't married anymore." Dean was shocked at how easily the holy angel lied.

The man nodded in understanding. "Well, Cameron, if you want to continue following the holy path, we can help you. There aren't any camps for your age going on right now, but one will be starting in just a couple weeks. If your dad and uncle don't mind, I'll show you around." He looked at Sam and Dean expectantly.

"Yeah, yeah, go ahead. We'll just take a look around ourselves," Dean replied.

Sam smiled politely and added, "I'm sure David wants to talk to the counselors and ensure that this is indeed a reputable facility and that he is willing to trust the employees with his child."

"Of course, feel free to walk around the grounds. If you follow the walkway to the east with the red markings on it, it will lead you to the cabins. The counselors will be at lunch with their groups in the cafeteria, which is also in that direction. I will bring Cameron back here by noon." The man left with Cas, leading him through the doors in the back of the building.

"Thank you, Zach," Sam called after him just before he disappeared through the exit.

Dean waited a moment before saying, "I've been thinking about it, and-"

"You have?" Sam looked skeptical, throwing a conspicuous glance at the nurse's door.

Dean glared at him, then continued, "Why would Satan bother himself with little girls? Doesn't he have bigger fish to fry than drowning kids? And this place just oozes holiness. It's probably nothing."

"Or it could be the vengeful spirit of someone who died here. I didn't have enough time to find anything on the internet other than the fact that these killings have been happening every two years to kids claiming they've spoken to Lucifer."

"How about this: you stay here and search 'Zach's' computer records for anything about the vics while I go check the cabins to scan for EMF. If there's a ghost claiming to be Satan whispering in little Annie's ear, then he'll be doing it at night when no one else can hear or see it."

"Sounds good." Sam sat down at the computer and stared at it for a moment. The thought crossed his mind that it looked so old it could have been around since before the camp even closed down. The door opened, then slammed closed with Dean's departure, but Sam didn't even notice, too engrossed in his work.


	5. A Mission!

Three hunters returned to the motel room they had occupied the previous night after stopping for fast food, having found nothing at Camp Activate of relevance. Castiel, however, wouldn't stop babbling about all the things he had seen and all the people he had met until Dean finally placed a cheeseburger in his hands. Sam settled at the table to mix up his salad and do some research on his lap top while Dean sat on his bed with a magazine and a cheeseburger and Cas watched cartoons on the television. The kid seemed to be captivated, and watched silently for the better part of an hour before losing interest and turning to the brothers for entertainment. Dean was thus forced to tear himself away from his copy of "Busty Asian Beauties" in order to play tag out in the parking lot, much to his dismay.

Ten minutes had hardly passed when the door to their room opened and Sam emerged to flag Dean down, who currently had Cas raised above his head.

"If you have time to tear yourself away from your.. um… busy schedule, I found something you might want to look at," he called.

"Yeah, be right there," Dean replied. He tucked Castiel under his arm, balanced sideways on his hip, and joined Sam inside to look at the lap top. Cas managed to squirm out of Dean's grip while he was distracted and went to hide under Dean's bed.

"See, I found the addresses of the parents of all the kids who were killed at the camp. I figure if we go talk to the ones still living in town, we can dig up anything relating the kids. The closest one is only a couple blocks away. Why don't we go check it out?" Sam looked up at Dean's frowning face.

"Why don't I take Cas to talk to them? You know, pull the whole 'he's my son and I'm not sure about sending him to a haunted summer camp' shtick."

"Oh, uh.. Sure, why not? Yeah, it would be suspicious if someone from the camp saw you acting like an FBI agent," Sam said quickly.

Dean raised an eyebrow at him. "You sure you're ok with that?"

"Yeah, take Castiel. I'll just wait here and do some research."

"Alright. Come on, Cassie, we have a mission to do." Dean stood up and put on his jacket.

Cas' head poked out from under the bed, his hair glittering from spider webs. His eyes were alight with excitement when he said, "A mission?"

"Yes, yes, a mission. Come on, before we lose daylight." Dean waved his hand for Cas to follow him as he walked across the room.

Castiel wiggled out from under the bed and followed Dean to the door. Dean chuckled and wiped the webs from Cas' hair, closing the door to the motel room behind them. The room settled into a dead silence after the roar of the Impala faded into the distance, but Sam found he couldn't concentrate on his research. It wasn't long before he gave up and just sat at the table, staring at the grainy, uneven surface and thinking about his fonder memories of being a kid with Dean. He admitted it was tough seeing Dean reverting back to his old self around baby Cas, but it was also refreshing seeing him so relaxed and almost happy.

Outside, the sun disappeared behind a horde of rainclouds, rendering the world dark and foreboding. Sam glanced out the window and sighed, leaning back in his chair to stretch his muscles before getting up and changing his clothes. It was nice out, the internet had choked up all information it had regarding the camp's deathly history, and Sam was feeling down; it was the perfect time for a jog.


	6. The Ultimate Family

Dean knocked on the door to a small, brick house. It had everything a suburban family would need: a front porch complete with swing, a fenced-in back yard home to a yapping golden retriever, bicycling gear strewn across the chalk-decorated driveway, and a basketball goal fixed above the garage door. In total, it was the kind of home Dean had yearned for during his years on the road.

After several moments of listening to muffled arguments, Dean was relieved when the door swung open to reveal a teenage Latina girl. "Who are you?" she asked suspiciously.

"I'm David Applebottom, and this is my son Cameron. We're new in town, and we'd like to get to know the locals. Are your parents home?"

The girl looked the two of them up and down. "You two don't look anything alike."

Dean forced himself to smile genially at her. "Ever heard of adoption?"

"Yeah, I've heard of it. But how do I know-"

"Ava!" An older version of the girl appeared and pushed the girl out of the doorway. "Go find your brother, he needs to do something besides play X-box all day. Take him outside to play basketball or something."

Ava appeared behind her mom to gesture to Dean that she was watching him before sauntering out of view.

"I apologize for my daughter, I think she's a little too into horror films for her own good. My name is Samantha Richart, but you can call me Sam," the lady introduced herself as she held out her hand. "I heard you say you're new in town?"

"Yeah, my name is David, and I just moved here with my son Cameron." Dean took Sam's hand and shook it heartily. "You know, it's funny… my brother's name is Sam."

"What a small world. It's good to meet you David, and welcome to town. Why don't you come in and have a drink?" she offered.

Dean looked down at Castiel, who was clinging to his pant leg and hiding behind him. "How would you like that, Cam?"

Sam knelt down and grinned at Cas. "My son is about your age. His name is Danny, and I'm sure he would love having someone to play basketball with. If that's alright with your father, of course." She looked up at Dean, who smiled and ruffled Cas' hair.

"Go crazy, kid."

Cas ran to join Danny once he heard the echo of a ball being bounced on the pavement, and Dean followed Sam inside. The living room consisted of a leather sofa, loveseat, and a reclining chair all turned to face an unlit gas fireplace. Dean turned his attention to the mantle and, more specifically, the pictures resting upon it. He walked over to get a better view.

"We have lemonade and iced tea," Sam offered from the hallway on her way to the kitchen.

"Lemonade's fine," he called after her.

One picture stood out from the rest, drawing Dean's gaze. It showed Ava as a kid standing in a gravel drive under part of a familiar sign. Upon closer inspection, Dean was able to infer that the sign said "Camp Activate" engraved in wood under the name of some Catholic church. No other pictures of the camp graced the mantle, so Dean took a seat on the sofa.

Sam came back in the room and handed a glass of iced lemonade to Dean. "So, David, what brings you here to town?" She sat on the opposite end of the sofa and sipped a glass of tea.

"I was looking for a place to settle down after a recent divorce, and my brother offered to let me and the kid stay with him until I can get my feet back on the ground," Dean explained. He took a long draught from his glass and set it down on the coffee table. "The local camp also caught my attention. Cam's mom used to take him to church, but I was never a religious man myself, so I thought it would be good for him to spend time with other holy children."

"Camp Activate? We've been sending Ava there for years. She's too old now, but Danny is going to start his first time there in a couple of weeks. The counselors there are wonderful to the children, and Ava always came back with fun stories about horseback riding or archery. I definitely suggest you sign Cameron up. Then maybe Danny and Cameron can bunk together! Hardly any of Danny's friends are Catholic, and it would be nice if he was at least familiar with one person."

"That sounds great, Sam. So, you've sent all your kids there?" He leaned forward with interest, hands clasped in his lap.

"Well, Luke, that's my husband, and I only have Ava and Danny," Sam explained, waving her hand as if to indicate her children.

On the inside, Dean was running through possibilities. Perhaps Sam simply wished to deny the existence of a dead child. Maybe he had the wrong address… no, Sammy had definitely said Richart, which wasn't exactly a common name. It had to be the right family.

"I heard rumors about the camp, though. Is it true that kids have gone missing every year?" he pressed.

At first, Sam looked startled, but she started giggling after the initial shock. "Disappearing? Who told you that? I'm afraid you've been misled about our humble summer camp."


	7. Oh, Butterscotch

"I'm really sorry, Mr. Applebottom, but I don't know what you're talking about and we don't appreciate jokes about death in this household."

_ Slam_.

"I got a phone call warning about you. I don't want you scaring the kids."

_Slam._

Dean and Castiel stood outside a fourth house waiting for an answer to the doorbell for seven minutes before they saw a police car cruise by and stop in front of the house. The woman inside caught his eye and lifted a radio to her mouth, speaking into it too silently for him to hear, but he knew nonetheless what was being said.

"Oh, hell no," he muttered. "Come on, Cas, we're getting out of here. Something is screwy with this mission, and we ain't getting anywhere until someone explains exactly what." Dean took Cas' hand and led him to the police car to confront the officer.

"Afternoon, ma'am," he greeted her with a smile.

"Good afternoon," she replied curtly. "Would you happen to be named David Applebottom?"

"If I am? What are you going to do; arrest me for my good looks?" Dean laughed.

The car door opened and the officer stepped out. Even with her black hair pulled back into an unappealing bun, she was rather attractive and Dean had no stipulations to her grabbing his arm the way she did until cold metal slapped his wrist.

"Actually, that's exactly what I'm going to do," she said with a smirk at his alarmed expression. Even in his predicament, he couldn't help but notice the way her dark skin crinkled around her sneering lips. "Except for the part about good looks."

"What the hell?!"

"Sir, please stand facing the car with your arms behind your back. I will use force if necessary, but it's always better if you just cooperate." Her tone was bored. Bored!

"Look, I'm just a concerned father trying to- Guh!" Face, meet the hood of yet another police car. Dean felt the officer's foot kick his legs apart while her left hand pushed his head down. "Easy there, tiger, I haven't even gotten your name yet."

"You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be provided for you. Do you understand the rights I have just read to you? With these rights in mind, do you wish to continue speaking to me?"

Dean was about to say something extremely sarcastic that would have landed him in the worst cell with the largest, meanest criminals the local jail had to offer, but Cas beat him to the punch. The miniscule angel had ambled over to the officer and tugged on her pant leg to draw her attention. Her hands stopped running over his body just before they reached his concealed pistol and he inwardly heaved a sigh of relief.

"What are you doing to my daddy?" Castiel whined, his eyes widened in innocent fear.

"Well, sport, unfortunately your dad's done some bad things to make the locals not like him so much," she cooed. "Now he's going to jail. Do you have a mommy nearby?"

Cas looked at the ground and shuffled his feet awkwardly. Dean couldn't help but appreciate what a good actor he was as a kid. He never would have been able to pull that off in his usual full-on angel state.

"No," he said quietly. "She's real far away, daddy says. I do have an Uncle Sammy, though."

"Good, you're daddy'll talk to him on the phone when we get to the station. By the way, I'm Monica. What's your name, kiddo?"

"Ca-Cameron."

"Nice to meet ya, Cameron. Go ahead and hop in the front seat while I take care of your dad."

Monica opened the door to the backseat of her cruiser and shoved Dean inside, putting her hand on his head and pushing down to avoid hitting his head on the roof, but, apparently she didn't push hard enough and his forehead clipped the metal edge. A grunt escaped Dean's throat and Monica apologized dully, making Cas giggle uncontrollably.

"You think that's funny, do ya?" Dean grumbled, making Cas laugh harder.

"Yeah, laugh it up. It's hilarious, I know; Cas already informed me. Just hurry up and get your ass down here, alright?"

The phone slammed into its hook with a jingle and Dean was promptly escorted back to his cell. Sam hadn't seemed too concerned when he heard that his brother was locked up, but hearing _why_ made him burst out in hysterics. Evidently, landing yourself behind bars for acting _suspicious_ was amusing to more people than just adolescents.

An older gentleman was sitting morosely in the corner of the cell Dean was assigned, but he grinned toothily when they were left alone.

"So, what are you in for, Sonny?" he questioned. His voice was young and chipper, nowhere close to matching his lined face and gray hair.

Dean looked the stranger over suspiciously before answering, "It appears that people think it's suspicious if a man wants to make sure he's sending his son to a nice summer camp."

A high-spirited laugh made Dean squint his eyes in doubt. "And what are you in for?"

"Oh, just the usual. Can't seem to behave myself, you must know what it's like." The man winked and Dean made a face, not wanting to know anymore.

"Sure, alright. Look, I'm going to try and take a nap until my brother gets here."

The man waved his hand dismissively. "Go right on ahead, kiddo."

Metal benches don't make the best beds, but Dean had pretty much mastered the art of sleeping on them, or anywhere for that matter; however, Dean couldn't get comfortable enough to sleep. He could feel the weight of eyes boring down on him. Something felt wrong, but it was probably stemming from the fact that he had to keep calling Castiel his son. An angel who was literally older than dirt itself, and Dean was in charge of taking care of him? It was a pretty big load to handle.

"Hey, want a butterscotch?"

A piece of hard candy thumped Dean's head. His cheek muscles twitched.


End file.
